Stirring Hope: Fadumo's Cooking Brings Nourishment and Opportunity to Somaliland's School Children

 

Fadumo as she prepares food for students.

The scent of simmering spices hangs heavy in the air as Fadumo Ali Abdulle, a mother of nine (3 girls and 6 boys), stirs a pot of bubbling porridge with a mixture of vegetables. Her hands, shaped by years of experience, move with the grace of a seasoned chef. She is a pillar of Daraselam Primary School, located just a few kilometers outside of Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland. Her work, along with that of her colleagues, is not just about cooking, but about making a difference in the lives of school-going children. The school has an enrollment of 154 students (80 boys and 64 girls). 

Fadumo has been working as a cook for nearly 14 years. "My daily routine is quite hectic, I wake up before dawn at 4:00 am, and walk an hour and a half to school because I don’t want to be late, she explains.

Despite volunteering, Fadumo's key message is that her love for her work fuels her perseverance in the face of her family's financial challenges.

"Like everyone, I want to earn a good living and make money. But the most important thing is loving what you do. I truly love my work as a volunteer, she says."

Once she arrives at the school, she and her fellow cooks spring into action, preparing a nutritious breakfast followed by lunch. They meticulously craft a daily schedule, ensuring the children receive a balanced diet to maximize their energy levels.

Fadumo prepares tea for students.

The menu is diverse, showcasing a variety of wholesome meals. From Saturday to Thursday, the children are served porridge made of specific ingredients, such as soya, maize, and sorghum, for breakfast. These ingredients are essential foods that provide vital nutrients and improve children's mental and physical growth.

Moreover, the lunch menu is a delightful array of stews made from tomatoes, onions, cabbage, carrots, served with an omelet also known as “Laxoox” in Somali.  However, for the children, Thursday is the highlight of the week, a day of meat stew and soup.

 

Fadumo and her cooking mates serving children while a student looks at her dish with a smile.

 "The children may have different tastes," Fadumo says with a smile, "but I can assure you, Thursdays are the most popular days among the children! On that day, we normally slaughter one to three goats to make meat stew and soup."

Before the Homegrown School Feeding (HGSF) program, Fadumo's life was challenging. Her husband's occasional labor couldn't provide enough food for their family. "My child used to be hungry most of the time," she recalls, "Because I didn't have nutritious food to offer at home. The meals weren't enough, and it affected his studies. He wanted to stay home because he could not concentrate at school; he only thought about food”.

Thanks to the HGSF program funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland and implemented by CARE, the lives of the children have been remarkably transformed. Many of the students at Daraselam come from impoverished backgrounds, struggling to cover school fees and food. This program allows them to divert their meager funds to cover other needs, like medicine, water, paying the rent.

School children enjoying their breakfast meal. 

  Fadumo's child, along with many others at Daraselam, is now thriving. "They are more energetic, focused in the classroom, and they are able to play and have fun. I have not seen them so happy in a very long time," she says.

For many families who struggle to provide food for their children, HGSF has been a lifeline. It not only ensures these children receive the nutrition they need but also enables them to attend school regularly. As a result, school enrollment and attendance rates have soared, and learning outcomes have improved dramatically.

The HGSF program is designed to provide children in schools with safe, diverse, and nutritious food, sourced locally from smallholders. The project is currently being implemented in 25 primary schools in Somaliland's Togdheer, Marodi-jeex, and Sanaag regions. The program started on the 15th of May 2023 and is expected to conclude on the 31st of December 2025. Since its inception, the program has been providing school meals to 5278 students.

The program has been instrumental in ensuring greater synergy among the local government of Somaliland, CARE, teachers, cooks, school management, farmers, and local businesses. With the completion of the greenhouses at targeted schools, CARE and its various stakeholders are now eagerly awaiting the time when the first crops can be harvested.

This will allow cooks such as Fadumo to serve dishes that are no longer required to be purchased but can instead be plucked from the nearby constructed greenhouse, which is just a few meters’ walk from where Fadumo prepares her school meals, saving time and resources on transportation and procurement costs.

 

Story by Khadar Abdulahi Nur